We went to Limon!!! Now....Nicaragua!!!

Sooo...we went to the beach! Playa Cahuita, to be exact, in the Limon province. It was great!! So let's just do this day-by-day :)
-Friday: We headed towards the Atlantic coast on Friday morning after a charla with Alex Grant about race/diversity in Costa Rica, specifically in the Limon province. It was a great thought-provoking charla, that allowed us to be honest about some previously held ideas about race and racial interactions in our own context. On our 3 hour drive to Limon (yes, that means Lemon), we stopped at coffee, pineapple, and banana plantations. Did you know pineapples grow on the ground and not in a tree? True story. And a banana "tree" is actually a banana PLANT. Keep 'em straight. Anyway, at the banana plantation it was so weird to be there (for my 2nd time) and to just see again all the people that work everyday packaging bananas for the US and Europe. We wanted to go out and walk among the banana plants like we did my semester, but they had just sprayed pesticides, and so we weren't allowed to go into the field. Hm. But there were workers out there, and we EAT the bananas out there, but we couldn't walk among them? I don't know, that's just weird to me. People always ask, but isn't it better that these people are being given "good" jobs instead of just left alone? I don't know, is it really better to work in a job where you don't get paid a fair wage, where you're exposed to pesticides that can cause sicknesses? Complicated.
So the rest of Friday was spent getting to Limon, and then I went out with the staff for a good supper at the Black Star Line Restaurante, where we had some good rice and beans (they say it in english in limon!) and then we headed to TCBY for some yummy desert! :)
-Saturday: We traveled from the center of Limon to the Kekoldi BriBri reservation, where for the first time I translated (!!!) that was so exciting! It went a lot better than I had thought, the time flew by, it felt like 2 minutes to me but really she talked to us for 2 hours! Crazy! :) We went to the beach, which was beautiful, and it only rained just a lil bit! :) Haha then we saw some monkeys, who got really close to us and tried to steal all our delicious fruits! Jerks. But they were cute (minus when they were hissing at us and showing their sharp little teeth!) Then that night we all ate together at the same Black Star restaurant, and we danced the night away, sweating our butts off in the hot humid weather, and we even had an impromptu limbo contest, which was awesome!! :) Then we headed back to the hotel and I chilled on the porch with a bunch of students, talking about deep stuff and not so deep stuff, and just sharing life together. It was great! :)
-Sunday: We headed to a Methodist church in the morning, where they sang hymns (totally awesome!) and the people were sooo amazing, they made us feel totally and completely welcome! :) On the drive back we watched Monsters inc, which was a great bonding experience as usual! :) Then we all finally arrived back in San Jose and headed back to our host families after a great weekend of activity and yet, relaxation. :)
So now things are in a bit of a whirlwind at the office as we prepare to head to nicaragua at 6:30 am monday morning! :) I am very excited, and not as anxious about it as the first time around, I think now I'm a little more able to do this "one day at a time" thing, and not worry about anything until it's actually happening to me. :) So pray for open hearts, and for us to see how God is working through us and in us. Pray for our host families, that we will not too badly disrupt their lives, and that we can show them hospitality and compassion like they are going to show us. :)
Thanks for reading, know that you are all daily in my thoughts and always in my prayers!!!
Con Amor.

Vamos a la playa!

We are going to the beach!
Well, okay, not right now, but on Saturday we will be in Limon ("we" meaning the whole group) and at the BEACH. Ahh. I'm psyched, obviously. :) But in other news...
So, I talked to Andres on Monday night, and it was actually a really good convo. I confronted him about ignoring us, and he told me that if I hadn't been with the other girls (who his gf doesn't like, and vice versa) that they would've come to say hi, but his gf feels really weird around them. So, I guess I could partly accept that, but not totally. Whatever. And I apologized for also not taking the initiative and going up to greet them, but I didn't really feel like it was my place. Sort of awkward. But we talked it through, which was good. And then he told me that he and his gf are thinking about going to another church, where they can make some mutual friends and she won't have to feel so awkward, which sounds like it would probably be the best situation. So anyways, it's over for good, but I think that at least some friendship remains, which is what I hoped most for. Whew. Complication-over.
Laura Frey is completely back on the market, folks. Tell your friends.
Haha okay well don't get that extreme. ;)
Thanks again for reading and praying! Know that I am missing you all and praying for you as well!! Much love and peace to you all!!! HUGS!

When your heart speaks, take good notes. -Judith Campbell

I like this quote (see blog title). It's so true, and it's something I'm always trying to do more of. Whenever I'm unsure/lost/confused/sad/happy/seeking/whatever, I find myself scribbling in my journal late at night. Taking notes "of my heart," if you will. And whew, does it help. It's like therapy sometimes, seriously. And boy, after this weekend, did I need that therapy! :)
Sooo I went to Naranjo (again!) this past weekend, and it was a weekend of really good times, and really..not so good times. I digress...
Friday I showed up at the church, because Friday nights there is a time of prayer, and that's where my host family was. Anyways, so I showed up, didn't notice at all that Andres was there until the very end, and he hardly talked to any of us, which was weird. Afterwards my host sister said to me, "Que Grinch estuvo andres hoy, verdad?" (what a grinch andres was tonight, yea?) Which I heartily agreed with, because he was. Haha. So then comes Saturday...
Saturday was a nice day, I relaxed a little, then helped move stuff from my host sister Kris' house back to her parents house, because a few days ago she and her husband decided to get divorced. When I was here a year ago they were separated, but then got back together, but now are definitely going to get divorced. And she's the same age as me. Yeah. Yikes. Sad stuff. Then Saturday evening we had a activity at the church for the young people (high schoolers & anyone not married who's under 40 basically) which was awesome. We played some games, one of which I won (think Simon Says). It was awesome. :) And Andres was there, and actually was like, almost totally normal with me. And I just thought in my head, WHEW, finally, we're getting to a normal stage where we can just be friends, great, everything's going to get better from here. (Save the next step of that story for sunday). So after church, we headed back to Kris' house to watch the CR vs. Mexico game, in which CR lost terribly (the national team isn't so great, and Mexico is pretty awesome) so that sucked, 0-3. But we had a great time yelling at the TV and eating dinner together. It actually made me feel like I was at home watching some OSU game, so that was nice. :) Fast forward to....Sunday.
Sunday: We show up at church, and I knew that Andres' girlfriend was going to be there with him, so I basically was mentally prepared to feel awkward. I had told him earlier in the week (after he told me she would be there) that it was going to be nice to finally meet her. Well, Sunday comes along....and nothing. Andres completely and totally ignored all of us (the group of friends who all usually hang out together). Yeah. And in this culture, you always greet everyone, right? Yea. It was like we didn't even exist. Needless to say, I was a) shocked and b) ticked. I mean, what is that about, right? Ugh. I was basically just kind of disgusted with the whole thing, because you know what, friends are friends. You don't just ignore people who are your friends because your significant other may get mad, or if whoever else you are with doesn't like them, right? If I've ever ignored any of you for that reason, I immediately ask forgiveness, because it feels like crap to be the person ignored, that's for sure!
So now what? That's the question I keep asking myself. Tonight's plan is to call Andres and get this all out in the open. But from where I stand: it's over. Which actually breaks my heart, a lot, more than I thought it would (yesterday I went from mad to crying myself to sleep, to mad again today). Ah. But really, I just can't stand people that act one way around some people, and totally different around them another day. I mean, what is that about? Ugh. So me, practically the queen of awkward relationships, will be hard at work tonight trying to keep from completely losing what I think could be a great friendship. But any more than that? I don't know anymore if that's a possibility I would even want.......

Just pray for a pure heart, to trust God's leading of my heart and words, and for boldness to speak the truth. Once again, thanks for reading as always. :) much love and peace to you all!

Michael Landon? In costa rica??

Graffitti is so weird. (see above picture). I found this in what used to be a restaurant when I went to Naranjo to visit my host family from last year. I highly doubt the actual Michael landon wrote that, and why would anyone want to write that for him? Strrrange.

In other news, the students are here, and they are doing great! So far, so good! They all seem super tranquilos, and really nice too! I am excited about getting to know them a little more, it should be great! On the 11 of Sept we head to Limon, on the Caribbean coast, so that should provide us with a little more group bonding, which im psyched for! =)

So since the students arrived last tuesday night (1 week ago, whoa!) things have been non stop insanity around this place. Wednesday we had orientation all day, then Thursday we had to meet in downtown San Jose so the students could go around and explore the city, then Friday we were in LASP all day until 420, and then I left right away to head to Naranjo to hang out with the host family again, and was with them all weekend! So needless to say, after I had dinner last night with Trevor & Laura (the couple I work with) I came home and was OUT. It was the best Ive slept the whole time Ive been here, which was great! (Perhaps it was the wine...haha).

The Naranjo trip was great this weekend, though things were still a little awkward with Andres. But, I just mentally decided that someone had to get over it, and that someone might as well be me. Haha. So I just acted normal, like I always had before, and I think that made a big difference. Basically I just get the vibe that we are both unsure of what to do in this situation, so any prayer about clarity would be much appreciated. I told him this past week how I feel, and so basically the ball is in his court. We will see what happens, I am in constant prayer for a new heart and new eyes to see my place in Gods love story for Gods world. Theres always something new to learn in life, yea? =)

Well I hope that all is well with you all, thanks again for reading and keeping up on the life and times of Laura. =) I miss fall, I cant believe for 2 years I have not experienced fall or the Fulton Co. Fair. So make sure to watch a football game, wrap up in a cozy sweatshirt, play in some leaves, and eat a funnel cake and drink and milkshake for me. =) Love you all!
Paz y amor.